A multidimensional assessment of friendship relations among young drivers and their contribution to road safety

Reckless driving among young people, especially among young men, is a global phenomenon and a major cause of injury and death. Behaviors and driving norms among young drivers are influenced by the common social discourse of their age group. For young people and their friends the car is considered a social space, in which they tend to feel independent and free of parental supervision. However, the interaction between them may contribute to increased risk exposure for everybody present or close-by.

Previous studies that examined the social climate among young people inside the car, focused on the number of passengers and the social pressure. Very few of the studies dealt with the overall peer relations that characterize young  people.  They lacked the unique contribution of close relations, their essence and the subjective perception of friendship in the context of driving, as well as peer models of safe versus risky driving. This deficiency is also reflected in the absence of specific tools for examining driving with friends.

To complete these gaps in the literature, we conducted a series of studies with the participation of young drivers of both sexes (aged 17-24 years) with various background characteristics.

The studies included both qualitative and quantitative examinations of the subject. In using combined methods, our goal was to be in as close touch as possible with the subjective perceptions regarding friendship relations, while at the same time to allow their objective measurement and to examine their associations with driving variables.

Study 1 was conducted using a phenomenological qualitative method through in-depth interviews with 32 young drivers (17 female, 15 male). The study aimed to observe comprehensively and to become familiar with phenomena that are at the core of the social driving culture among young people. It also aimed to study the role of the quality of friendship relations viewed from the subjective perspective of young drivers. The study relies on the theoretical conceptualization of friendship by the Greek philosopher Aristotle (2009 [350 BC]). The findings from Study 1 shed light on some key characteristics of driving with friends which may be related to different types of friendship definitions, formulated in accordance with the teachings of Aristotle's philosophy. In these terms, we found that the perception of safe driving with friends is more compatible with the definition of friendship as friendship of utility and of virtue, while the perception of risky and distracted driving is more compatible with the definition of friendship as friendship of pleasure. In addition, female drivers of all ages (between the ages of 17 to 24 years) and male drivers (only above age 20 years) perceive friendship relations as characterized by values ​​such as responsibility, equality, and a genuine concern for others. These characteristics are consistent with the definition of friendship of virtue and seem to have the power to promote safe driving.

The quantitative studies consisted of a total of 706 participants, including 374 females and 332 males, aged 17-24 years (M = 19.4, SD = 1.40) as follows:

Study 2 focused on the construction of a multidimensional scale, in order to examine a safe driving climate among friends (SDCaF), and its validation. This research tool was based on new items which were formulated from the findings of the preliminary qualitative research, as well as from tools which have been developed in the past and dealt with friendship in general and with the family climate of driving.

The final scale consisted of 19 items which reflect four content areas: friends' pressure while driving, social costs of driving with friends, communication between friends about driving, and a shared commitment to safe driving with friends. In order to establish the validity of the scale, we examined the associations between its four dimensions and various variables of personality, friendship and driving.

The findings indicate that the variables, 'resistance to peer influence', 'self-disclosure' and 'personal responsibility for safe driving', are positively associated with the SDCaF dimensions: 'communication' and 'shared commitment to safe driving with friends'.

All three variables were also negatively associated with the SDCaF dimensions: ' friends' pressure while driving' and 'social costs of driving with friends'. The variable, 'general tendency to respond to social pressure' is positively associated with the SDCaF dimensions: 'friends' pressure' and 'social costs' and negatively associated with 'shared commitment to safe driving with friends'. The variable, 'sensation-seeking', which has previously been shown to be related to reckless driving, is positively associated with the dimension 'friends' pressure' and has negatively associated with the dimension 'shared commitment of safe driving'.

 Finally, among the demographic variables, gender differences were found. The findings show that males score higher than females in the dimension 'friends' pressure' and lower in the dimension 'shared commitment to safe driving with friends'.

Study 3 examined the ability of the SDCaF scale to explain risky driving based on the model of the Theory of Planned Behavior (Theory of Planned Behavior, TPB; Ajzen, 1991). The findings demonstrate that the SDCaF scale strengthens the explanation of the TPB model with regard to the issue of young people driving.

Specifically, the dimension of friends' pressure while driving, adds 9%, a significant difference, to the explained variance of proneness to reckless driving which is in excess of the variance explained by the variables 'gender', 'driving before obtaining a license', and the three components of the TPB. In addition, we examined whether the association between the gender of the driver and the proneness to reckless driving is mediated by the dimensions 'friends' pressure' and 'shared commitment to safe driving with friends' of the SDCaF scale. These dimensions were found to be full mediators of the association between gender and the proneness to reckless driving. That is, the tendency of male drivers to take more risks than female drivers while driving with friends is probably a consequence of their being scored higher in 'friends' pressure' than females and of their being lower in their 'shared commitment to safe driving' than that of the female drivers.

This series of studies has attempted to deepen the understanding of friendship relations and their contribution to young people’s driving. We believe it also has practical significance: the SDCaF scale was developed in order to provide a specific diagnostic tool for detecting susceptibility to reckless driving among young drivers. The value which inherent to the dimensions of friendship relations can leverage the formulation of programs and educational messages. We hope this will contribute to moderate risky driving and improve both advocacy as well as law enforcement facing the various populations of young drivers.